A thug has been jailed after he told a man he would “bite his face off” then marched him to a cash machine and removed the maximum amount from his account.
Jeff Binnie, 28, immediately became violent with the man after finding out he had £350 in his account.
Binnie punched his victim several times to the face, telling him he would “leave him for dead” if he tried to run off.
He then got the man to enter his pin number before pushing him out of the way and removing £250.
Binnie pleaded guilty at Aberdeen Sheriff Court to one charge of assaulting the man, detaining him and robbing him of money and a watch.
‘We’re going to a cash machine now, let’s go’
Fiscal depute Lucy Simpson told the court that Binnie was at a house in Aberdeen with a group of friends smoking cannabis when the man turned up and wanted to buy some.
Concerned about his ability to pay, the group asked him to prove he had money.
“To show confirm he had the funds to purchase the cannabis he showed his banking app on his phone, showing he had £350 in his account”, Ms Simpson said.
Soon after Binnie approached the man and pulled him from a sofa and forced him to the floor.
He told the man: “Don’t do anything or I will bite your face off.”
Binnie then punched the man several times to the face and took his watch before telling him: “We’re going to a cash machine now, let’s go.”
He frog-marched him to an ATM on King Street and threatened: “If you do anything I will batter you and leave you for dead.”
Binnie held the man’s arm as he put the card in the machine and entered his pin number before shoving him out of the way and pushing the button for £250.
He grabbed the cash and left the man on the street.
His victim was left with a bleeding and swollen face as a result of the attack.
Police later matched Binnie’s DNA to the stolen watch and he was arrested.
Accused left prison and went to ‘drug den’
Defence agent Mike Monro told the court that Binnie left prison and entered “another regime which was the Covid lockdown”.
He said: “Instead of taking advantage of being drug-free he then went to a proverbial drug den.”
Mr Monro also claimed that Binnie acted along with another woman, who was also at the property at the time, but said that his client “does accept that he did get involved, did go to the ATM and did take the watch”.
Sheriff Graham Buchan described Binnie’s actions as a “plainly serious offence”.
He added: “One of the most aggravating aspects of this case is that you committed it as early upon your release from prison.”
Sheriff Buchanan sentenced Binnie, whose address was given as HMP Grampian, to 14 months in prison.
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